Adjustable jaw pliers



' June 6, 1950 H, Rf o s 2,510,660

ADJUSTABLE JAW PLIERS Filed May 18, 1946 INVENTOR. fiZZzLS 1?. $0.53,

Patented June 6,1950

ADJUSTABLE JAW PLIERS Hollis E. Ross, Bufiaio, N. Y., assignor to Barcalo Manufacturing Company, Bufi'alo, N. Y.

Application May 18, 1946, Serial No. 670,716

This invention relates to pliers, pincers and the like, and particularly to pliers of that type which comprise a pair of crossing jaw and bandle-forming members which are pivotally connected in such a way as to permit relative adjustments of their fulcrum or pivot point, whereby the jaws of the pliers can be differently set to adapt them for better gripping objects of different sizes.

One object of the invention is to provide pliers or the like of an improved practical and. desirable construction. Other objects are to provide pliers which are of a simple and inexpensive but strong and durable, novel construction; in which the means for pivotally connecting the plier members-is of a novel construction producing a stron and reliable but very simple and inexpensive fulcrum or pivot for said members which, preferably, is adjustable for differently setting the plier Jaws.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof, shown in the accompanying drawings, and the novel features of the invention will be particularly set forth in the appended claims.

In said drawings:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of one side of a pair of pliers embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is an elevational rear edge view of the pliers.

Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation thereof, enlarged, on line 3-3, Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary, sectional elevation on line 4-4, Fig. 2, showing the position of the fulcrum or pivot when the plier jaws are opened wide to permit adjustment of the fulcrum point for increasing or decreasing the spread of the aws.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view enlarged of the pliers on line 5-5, Fig. 4.

The pliers comprise two handle or lever members if! and II which, as usual, cross each other and are pivotally connected between their opposite end portions I2 and I3, which respectively form the gripping jaws and the jaw-operating handles of a pliers. The intermediate portions l4 and of these members, where they cross and are pivotally connected, are shown as being of less thickness than and oppositely offset relatively to middle planes of the handle members to thus provide directly opposed handle and jaw portions of substantial thickness without objectionably increasing the bulk or thickness of the pliers as a whole, and the jaws are shown as pro- 2 Claims. (01. 81-513) jecting angularly relatively to their handle portions, but the invention is not restricted to such formation of the members.

The two members of the pliers are pivotally connected by a substantially U-shaped member or element comprising spaced legs I! and 18 connected by an integral cross piece I9. This connecting element straddles that portion of one member ill of the pliers between a pivot aperture 20 in said member and one edge of the member with one leg ll passing through said aperture and both legs I! and I8 of the connecting element rigidly attached to the second member ll of the pliers, preferably by riveting the ends of the legs in transverse holes in said member H. The cross piece l9 of the connecting element extends beside and is adapted to bear against the outer face of the first member In of the pliers between the pivot aperture 20 and one edge of the intermediate portion of said member Ill.

Preferably the pivot aperture 20 through which the leg I! of the connecting element passes is elongated in a direction substantially normal to the grippin face of the jaw of the member having the aperture, and comprises two or more relatively wide segmental circular portions 2| which are joined by narrower intervening passage portions 22, and the leg I! of the connecting element is of a transverse thickness or width in one direction greater than its width or thickness in another direction. The greater transverse dimension of the leg is slightly less than the diameter of the segmental circular portions 2| of the aperture so that it can turn in these aperture portions 2! and form the fulcrum or pivot for the swinging movements of plier members I0 and H in the use of the pliers. But this fulcrum leg I! cannot pass through the passage portions 22 of the aperture except by opening the jaws of the pliers, preferably to their maximum extent, in which position of the jaws, shown in Fig. 4, the pivot leg I! will be located with its lesser transverse dimension in line with the passage portions 22 of the aperture 20, and can pass from one pivoting portion 2| of the aperture '20 through the connecting passage 22 to the next pivoting portion 2| of the aperture for adjusting the pivot or fulcrum point of the plier members to set the jaws nearer to or farther from each other to properly accommodate objects of diiferent sizes.

Because of the substantially U-shaped form of the pivotal connecting element, the pivot or fulcrum for the two members of the pliers, formed by the pivot leg 11, is rigidly fixed at its inner 3 end, as by riveting, to the plier member to which it is fastened, and the outer or opposite end of the pivot leg is also connected through the medium of the cross piece and other leg I8 of the connecting element to the same member of the pliers. Thus, the pivot or fulcrum for the plier members is securely fixed at its opposite ends and braced rigidly against loosening or being forced out of its intended perpendicular position in the use of the pliers. It thus provides a much stronger pivotal connection for the plier members than is provided in previous constructions in which the pivot is fixed only at its inner end to the plier member to which it is attached. Nevertheless this formation and arrangement of the pivotal connecting element provides an inexpensive, simple and light construction for the pliers as a whole, and one that is desirable or attractive in appearance. Since the cross-piece I9 of the pivotal connecting element crosses and is adapted to contact a relatively broad portion of the handle member H1 extending from its edge to its pivot aperture 20, said cross-piece, notwithstanding that it need not be wider than the pivot leg .I Lafiords a substantial area for contact with the outer side of said handle member whereby the two handle members are maintained in close race to face contact where they cross and are prevented from relative tilting or twisting out of their intended relation in the use of the pliers.

The cross piece 19 is preferably made as a stamping from heavy plate or sheet metal, and the ends 17 and I8 of the stamping are then bent laterally in the same direction to the same side of the central or connecting part to form the iegs. The leg ll nearest the jaws is substantially broader than its thickness to provide broad faces that are generally parallel to the clamping surface of jaw l3 to which it is riveted. The cross piece between the legs is arcuate or extends angularly, so that a theoretical line j oining the centers of the legs makes an acute angle less than 90 to the planes of the broad faces of the leg I1.

I claim as my invention:

1. A pair of adjustable jaws comprising two pivot-ally related angular elements providing opposing cooperating jaws and handles extending at generally right angles to the jaws, one handle having a plurality of spaced apart, equai size, circular apertures from face to face joined by passages substantially narrower than the diameters of the apertures, the apertures and passages forming a slot extending in a direction lengthwise of that handle, a U-shaped pivot element of fiat plate metal comprising a cross piece and a pair of legs having the free ends of its legs secured to one handle at the face thereof abutting the other handle and its cross piece extending in a direction lengthwise of said one handle, with the leg nearest the jaws passing through one of said apertures and the cross piece passing over the other handle to confine the handles against separation, the leg nearest the jaws being substantially wider than its thickness and having its broad faces approximately crosswise of the length of the slot formed by the apertures and passages when the jaws are parallel, the theoretical line joining the centers of the legs making an acute angle of less than with the broad faces of the leg nearest the jaws.

2. A pair of pliers comprising two pivotally related angular elements providing opposing jaws and handles extending at generally right angles to the jaws, and a substantially U-shaped element of fiat plate metal pivotally connecting said plier members at the angle between the jaws and handle and having spaced iegs joined by an integral cross piece, one handle member having in its handle but adjacent its jaw :a series oi spaced apart, equal size apertures joined by passsages substantially narrower than the diameter of the apertures, :said connecting element straddling a portion of said one handle member with both legs rigidly attached to the other handle, and the leg nearest the jaws passing through one of said apertures in said one handle, forming a fulcrum on which said one handle pivots in the opening and closing movements of said jaws, and being rectangular in cross section with the largest faces generally parallel to the jaw in the handle to which it is connected and making an acute angle less than 90 to a theo-- retical line joining the centers of the legs, the width of the leg passing through the apertures being greater than the width of said passages and the thickness of said leg passing through said apertures being less than the width of said passages.

HOLLIS R. ROSS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 295,885 Pullman Mar. 25, 1884 326,153 De Grofi July 17, 1906 951,076 Jones Mar. '1, 1910 FOREIGN PATEN'IS Number Country Date 99,869 Sweden Sept. 1'7, 19. .0 

